Optimal Control of Soft Robotic Fingers

Soft pneumatic actuators (SPAs) are often used in soft robotics due to their low cost and lightweight. However, their
compliance and flexibility often lead to nonlinear dynamics, which complicates the design and control of soft robots. This paper
deals with synchronizing multiple SPAs in a soft gripper to ensure the grasping success rate. The synchronization is transformed into
an optimization problem with constraints, where the optimal time-dependent input pressures of multiple actuators are determined.
The optimized input leads to a synchronized movement of the SPAs and increases the reliability of gripping an object. In addition
to the synchronization, the proposed approach allows for minimizing a performance measure, e.g., the operation time to perform a
maneuver or the required energy consumption. An example of the synchronization of three different stiff SPAs demonstrates the
proposed approach, where the synchronization is concerned with optimal energy control.